Talk:Ekphrasis

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Color/Graphics/Sound

About Games_(style_guide)#Game_infobox: I'm not sure I understand exactly how to fill out the "color", "graphics" and "sound" parameters.

  • Does "color" mean the color of the text, or does it just mean there are color graphics?
  • About "graphics":
In the latter two cases, more info is wanted: what types or graphics and how are they used?
Are the "types of graphics" photographs, drawings etc., or something else?
  • What's the exact difference between "required" and "optional"? For instance, are sounds "required" if the game needs an interpreter which plays sounds, or if the game actually can't be solved without listening to the sound?

--Eriorg 10:12, 27 November 2006 (EST)

First of all, thank you for adding a page for Ekphrasis to IFWiki.

Second, yes, I should be more explicit what I meant for these ratings. For "color", we're only refering to text colors and background-text colors.

  • "none" means that the game only uses one color for text and only one color for a contrasting background color for the text. These colors are either the default of the interpreter or invariant choices made by the author. A blind player isn't missing any part of game just by listening to the text.
  • "optional" means that either the text color or the background color can change at certain points of the game, but the effect is cosmetic and can be ignored. A player using a black-and-white 'terp can still play and win the game without any problems, but they'd miss the "whole experience" as it were. For example, Bronze's ASCII art compass rose uses color to mark where the player has or hasn't been, but this information is optional; the player can still play the game without seeing those colors.
  • "required" means that the game not only changes the text or background color, but the player must be able to see these colors in order to play and finish the game.

It's a similar deal with sounds. "Optional" sounds are included for enhancing the experience, but the game is still playable on a computer without speakers. "Required" sounds means the player has to be able to hear the sounds to solve at least one puzzle.

And again, "optional" graphics are included in the game but not necessary for the player to win. Beyond has beautiful but optional graphics, for example. A blind player who can only hear the text of Beyond could still play the game. "Required" graphics are graphics that have to be seen in order to play and finish the game. Thy Dungeonman 3: Behold Thy Graphics!! has required graphics. For example, there's a photo album in the game, and later on, the player must answer some questions based on info shown in the photos to proceed.

So, in short, these are meant to be player accessibilty ratings, not interpreter requirements. -- David Welbourn 11:51, 27 November 2006 (EST)

Thank you, it's much clearer now! There's still one question you didn't answer, though:
Are the "types of graphics" photographs, drawings, etc., or something else? --Eriorg 16:18, 27 November 2006 (EST)
Um, I'm not sure I remember what I meant there. I think I was thinking of both photographic/drawing/ASCII art and internal/external. (eg: External graphics might be a map in a .pdf file.) I'm thinking now that I should delete that "types of graphics" line, and suggest instead that comments about the graphics (whatever comments ought to be made) should be noted in, um, one of Notable Features, Trivia and Comments, or Versions, whichever seems most appropriate. And to avoid crowding the infobox with commentary. -- David Welbourn 16:55, 27 November 2006 (EST)

Thank you for your answers!

I'm sorry, but I have still one more question about color/graphics/sound... Sometimes (for old commercial games I never actually played and only heard about in old magazines, for instance), I only know that a game has graphics (or sound), but not if it's required to complete the game. What do I do, then? I can use neither "required" nor "optional", and of course "none" wouldn't be correct! And "TBD" wouldn't be very good either, because it wouldn't tell us there are graphics. Can I then use just "yes", or something like that? --Eriorg 14:22, 30 November 2006 (EST)